Bottle stopper



c. H. STRlCKLAND ET AL 2,774,499

BOTTLE STOPPER Dec. 18, 1956 Filed Oct. 28, 1953 INVENTORS emu; HERMAN smmmw EDWARD DELMAR EBERTS BY 00mg) LEE R0213 BOTTLE STOPPER Claude H. Strickland, Edward D. Eberts, and Donald Lee Robb, Cincinnati, Ohio, assignorsto Schenley Industries, Inc., New York, N. Y., ,a corporation of Delaware Application October 28, 1953, Serial No. 388,786 7 1 Claim. (Cl. 2157) The present invention relatesgenerally to containers,

2,774,499 I Patented D ec. 18,.1956

I Other objectsof the present invention will becomeap parent upon reading the followi ng specification and reand is particularly directed to fluid containers and closures therefor.

As is well known to those versed in the art, it has been found economically impractical and otherwise undersirable to provide excessive empty space or head room in conventional containers which are used for volatile or expansible fluids, such as alcoholic beverages, etc. Consequently, serious difficulties have been experienced, as for example, the violent expulsion of bottle stoppers and the explosion of bottles when the same are subjected to relatively high temperatures. As such bottles may be filled and packed under one set of climatic conditions and transported to remote parts of the earth having very different climatic conditions, it has not been possible in the past to employ uniformly filled, like containers without the above mentioned undesirable results. Further, alcoholic beverage containers are frequently displayed in store windows and show cases under heavily lighted and poorly ventilated conditions, so that the bottle contents are heated and expanded, and therefore likely to cause explosions resulting in personal injury.

Another disadvantage encountered in the use of conventional containers is the necessity of breaking the paper or plastic seal which is usually wrapped around and secured to the bottle neck and adjacent portion of the closure or stopper. Such seals are commonly broken by manually running the knife or other sharp instrument about the bottle neck, a time consuming and dangerous procedure for unskilled hands. beverages, an additional, Government tax stamp or seal is secured over the bottle stopper and along the bottle neck. Although Government seals serve to increase the difficulty encountered in opening bottles, as mentioned above, they are often inadvertently broken before sa1e;and must be replaced.

Accordingly, it is a principal object of the present invention to provide an improved bottle closure or stopper In the case of alcoholic" of the tubular member.

which obviates the above mentioned disadvantages, by novel means permitting safe expansion of the contents tracting from its appearance.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a bottle stopper having the characteristics mentioned in the foregoing paragraph which is constructed to permit quick and easy severance for a bottle seal by a single manipulation; and which is provided with novel means to prevent the inadvertent breaking of the seal during handling or the like. It is a more particular object of the present invention to provide a bottle stopper having a hollow shank and a hollow head, the latter defining a chamber communicable with the interior of a bottle to permit the expansion of fluid contained therewithin.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a bottle stopper of the type described which is simple in construction and durable in operation, and which can be manufactured at a relatively low cost.

ferring to the accompanying drawings, which form a material part of this disclosure. p v

The invention accordingly consists in-the features of construction, combinations of elements, and arrangements of parts, which will be exemplified in the construction hereinafter described,; and of which the scope will be indicatedby the appended claim.

In the drawings,

Figure 1 is a perspective view showing a bottle stopper, constructed in accordancewith the present invention; and

Fig. 2 is a sectional view taken substantially-alongthe line 2-2 of Fig.1. j a

Referring now more particularly to the drawings, the embodiment of theinvention illustrated therein comprises a shank, generally designated 10, and anenlarged-handle or head, generally designated 11,- on I one end of 1 the shank. 1

The shank includes a hollow open ended tubular member '12 having an external circtunferential groove.1 3 adjacent to and spaced from the shank end 14. v j

The enlarged head 11 is fixedly secured to, or formed integrally with the end 15 of thetubular member 12, and has a hollow interior chamber 16 opening into the hollow The head 11 is formed with a pair of laterally projecting hollow wings 17 and 18, and a recessed portion or groove 19 extending between the wings and over the head from pnefiide thereof to the other. The head 11 is further formed with a circumferential head 20, which defines an annular shoulder 21 facing toward the shank end 14.

The shank 10 also includes a yieldable, tubular cover 23, which is preferably fabricated of cork or other suitable material, and rotatably circumposed about the tube 12. The covering 23 is arranged with one end 24 in engagement with the shoulder 21 and the other end 25 adjacent to the annular groove 13.

An annular member or ring 26 is circumposed about the tube 12 adjacent to the end 14, and is formed with an internal shoulder 27 adapted to seat in the groove 13. The ring is arranged in engagement with the cover end 25 to prevent longitudinal displacement of the cover and removal of the latter. It is preferred to fabricate the ring 26 of polyethylene, or other suitable material having sufficient resiliency to permit engagement of the ring over the end 14'of the tube 12, and suflicient stifiness to prevent removal therefrom.

, tubular member'23 is engageable with the interior wall of a bottle neck for sealing the bottle opening, and serves to mount the head 11 and tube 12 for rotative movement with respect to the bottle. Further, the Wings 17 and 18 permit the application of increased torque or leverage for readily effecting rotative movement of the head 11 with respect to the bottle.

It will now be apparent that the interior 16 of the head 11 defines a chamber which communicates through the tube 12 with the interior of a bottle when the shank '10 is inserted in the neck of the bottle. expansion of a fluid disposed Within the bottle, the fluid is permitted to pass through the tube 12 and into the chamber 16, the latter serving to accommodate a substantial portion of the fluid and preventing the explosion of the bottle or expulsionof the stopper.

Hence, upon As a sheet of paper or plastic material is usually wrapped around and'secured to'thebottle neck and stopper, to seal the bottle, it will now be understood that such a seal may be simplyand eifectively severed by mere manuaffotati'o n 6f'thliead*orliandle 11. Further; as isbdriiren'tibii alcoholic beverage containers, the tax sta'r'np or"seal arranged over' and secured tothe bottle stopper and bottle neck. It will'now be appreciated that the 'ie'eesse'd portion '19 is adr'ni rably well adapted to rece'ive' 'siich a tax stamp. That'is, a tax stamp seated in and-secured to the recessed. portion 19 will be protected frominadver'tent tearing or other breakage by the raised adjacent portions of th wing's' l7 and 18. Further, the portion of a tax stamp secured to the head 11 may be quickly and: easily'severed from the portion or portions secured to the bottle neck by simply turning the head, as

describedherinabove' From the foregoing, it is seen that the present inventiofi fully accomplishes its intended objects, and provides a"bottle stOpPer"which i's' well adapted to meet practical conditions of manufacture and use. i -Although the'pr'esent invention has been described in some detail by way of illustration and example for'purposes of clarity of understanding, it is understood that certain chan ges and modifications may be made within the spirit of the invention and'scope of the appended claim.

What is claimed is:

A bottle s'to'pp'ercomprising a tubular shank having an open lower end andan open upper end, a hollow bulbous handle integral with the upper end and in fluid communication with the shank/said handle at the juncture with the sharik form'ingan annular oustanding shoulder on the exterior of'the upper end of the shank, a yieldable sleeve member circumposed about the shank for positioning in the neck of abottle and rotatable relative to the shank to permit rotation of the handle with respect to the bottle when the shank is inserted'into and removed from the neck of a bottle, said shank having an annular seat formed exterierly adjacent its lower end, an annular elastic member having a lip fixedly eirc'umposed in the seat against displacement therefrom and bearing against the lower end of the yieldable member to locate it against axial movement, said handle having opposing hollow sides and a top to accommodate the expanding contents of a bottleinto which it is inserted and having a central recessed'portion extending across the top and down the sides, said recessed portion being disposed at the center of the handleabove and in line with the shank to receive a seal extending from the sides of the recessed portion down along the outside of the neck of a bottle and adapted to be fixed thereto at opposite points, and said handle having bulged ends forming' han d grips to afiord increased leverage for manual rotation of the handle.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 523,539 Miller July 24, 1894 656,698 Marchand Aug. 28, 1900 672,850 Jayne a- Apr. 23, 1901 889,636 Roberts June 2, 1908 1,743,980 Samson Jan. 14, 1930 2,079,049 St. Clair May 4, 1937 FOREIGN PATENTS 5,009 Great Britain of 1899 161,797 Switzerland Aug. 1, 1933 

